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When the day of the golden anniversary arrived, my manic brain took over and jitters crawled up in me because I was aware that this time around, I wouldn't be able to ditch the spotlight and the scrutinizing eyes.
I paced back and forth in my hotel room as I bit my nails, thinking all the worst case scenarios that could happen to me. I could accidentally step on my gown while I walked then fall. That could be disastrous, considering that all eyes were on me. I might freeze when they would call my name for my turn to play the piano. Or worse, I might forget all the things I'd learn in piano.
I almost jumped when a loud knock startled me.
"Emerald, the press is waiting downstairs. We should go now," it was my mother from the other side of the door, reminding me for the nth time.
"Coming!" I replied as I put on my high heels. After paying one last glance on my overall look, I pulled my dress up a little to make it easy for me to walk on. The damn dress was light but it felt a little too breezy on one side. My cousins chose the dress and they thought the high cut up to my thighs was alluring. Don't get me wrong, the dress looked immaculate and made me look like I was five inches taller and all but I think they had too much fun selecting a dress for me.
When I stepped out of the room, my mother wasn't the only one in the hallway. The whole family was waiting for me and their eyes gleamed in fascination.
Nana had the most surprised look out of all of them. Her hands covered her mouth and a little teary-eyed, too. "Oh, my. You look absolutely stunning, sweetie."
The amazement in her eyes was amusing and I couldn't help but smile at that. "Thank you, Nana."
My uncle cleared his throat as to get all our attention. "Some of the guests will be arriving soon and we can't let them wait. Remember that the press can be very aggressive with their questions and that you shouldn't feel pressured to answer them. You can politely say that you are either uncomfortable by their question or that you don't know the answer."
I nodded at his every point to confirm that I understood what he said. His eyes then turned to my mother beside me. "You're going to be fine, right?"
"Of course," she assured my uncle then wrapped her arms around my waist. "We are going to be okay."
We began to walk to the elevator and soon enough, we found ourselves in front of the journalists with their respective photographers. There were about twenty people in the room when we arrived. Once they heard the door swung open, the shutters went off as the photographers were on a frenzy to take our pictures while the interviewers mumbled inaudibly.
My mother held my hand as we enter the room, her presence was very well received and I felt less nervous. Nana, the twins, and my grandparents sat behind the room while Uncle Richard, mother and I walked to the platform.
In a matter of seconds, we were sitting by the long table along with individual stand-alone microphones in front of us. The interviewers' eyes were all on us; they seemed calm and collected. Even though my cousins briefed me as to what would happen at this sort of event, I still had mixed feeling with this press conference because for one thing, this was very new to me.
The background noise had died down once my uncle called their attention. Tape recorders were turned, the journalists took out their notepad, ready to write like their life depended on it.
"Good afternoon everybody. I would like to, first of all, thank you for your presence today. As you all know, today is a very important day for us. My mother and father are celebrating their fiftieth year together and recently, my beloved older sister has reunited with us,"
The journalists showed a genuine smile as their eyes quickly glanced over to my mother. Uncle Richard then continued his part of the speech. He briefly went over the ugly past that my mother had to go through before she had me, to the time that my uncle bought the painting, and to what was happening to us now.
"I did not call this conference just to tell you the story behind my sister's reason for coming but to request that the privacy of my love ones are respected. Also, I called this conference today to officially announce that the Darlington Group and the Mizuhara Group are finally partners. This is made possible by Maegan Darlington; her effort to the Mizuhara Group as one of our key stakeholder and partner possible results to her new position as President."
A round of applause exploded as the crowd looked back to where my cousin was situated.
"However, this week, we unexpectedly sought after one of the companies whom we are in competition with the Mizuhara's for the past year. The D.V Aircrafts published an unofficial statement about getting another Canadian company on board and this sparked the interest of many of you. I say you are lucky to attend today's press conference because you are one of the very first to hear from us."
"D.V Aircrafts has a long history of delivering high quality aircraft parts and engine in a highly complex manufacturing and distributing agencies in 10 countries and counting. Over the years, D.V Aircrafts has continuously challenged many other aircraft manufacturers around the world and we are proud and excited to be a part of their journey to being the number one choice of brand of high quality aircrafts."
There were inaudible whispers within the crowd. Brows were shot up while the others were utterly amazed. My heartbeat hitched for a moment, my back straightened as my ears perked up at the new information I was hearing. Marcus accepted my uncle's deal? Then that meant that I...
I silently thanked God for this good news. Marcus accepted my uncle's help and I wanted to jump in joy! It was an unexpected turn of event, indeed.
"With the investment led by us together with our powerful partners from the East Asian region and Europe, D.V will have a more powerful financial backing and strategic support to achieve the next phase of growth."
Uncle proceeded to closing his speech. When he sat beside me, I glanced to my side and mouthed "thank you". He gave me a short nod and announced that we were ready for questions. Hands and voices were then raised.
"Anna D'Stefano from Financial Post," a dark haired woman clad in beige top and black skirt spoke up from the very front of the crowd. "First of all, congratulations on your new partnership with one of the most prestigious financial group in Japan. My question is: what made you decide to acquire the D.V. Aircraft and what kind of projects are you specifically looking to fund now that you have D.V?"
"To clarify again, this is not an acquisition and that D.V Aircraft will function as a separate corporate entity. For one, they did not announce that the shares of the company are on sale, and that forcing to buy out their shares will require billions of dollars. As for the reason why we sought after their partnership is because they are, by far, one of the technology advanced and reliable aircraft manufacturers out there. This partnership will help boost our economy- the scope of our project will not be discussed in detail at the moment but I can assure you that there will be opportunities for employment. "
The journalist thanked Uncle Richard and another journalist introduced himself. "Kurt Valentino from Newsfeed and this is a question for Carol Darlington. What are your plans now that you are back in the limelight? There are rumours that you plan to come back to the music industry."
My mother pulled the mic closer to her and smiled. "First of all, my last name is Wren."
I held back my laughter when my mother corrected the journalist. Clearly, someone did not do their research. The journalist apologized and my mother was pretty forgiving about it.
"And to address that rumour, I will not perform publicly because I want to take care of my father. I'm happy playing piano at home. My family asked me if I want to go back but when I think about it, I have to study again. I've been away from the music industry for over twenty years and I think my skills as a classical pianist will not compete with young, bright pianist out there. I know it's not too late to go back and study but I plan to stay and help out my father. I want to spend a lot of time with him."
Kurt Valentino thanked my mother and another interviewer called out my uncle to ask a question about his news about the company's new partnership.
The whole interview lasted for almost an hour and none of the interviewers asked me.
Yet.
I thought I was off the hook when Uncle Richard asked if anyone had more questions. A brunette woman called me out for a question.
"Linda from Matrix News. This is a question for Miss Emerald Wren. According to my research, you are an art student in Vancouver before you came here in Toronto. Do you plan on embarking on the business side of the Darlington empire or continue to follow your passion for art?"
Hit me right in the bullseye.
"I..." the word spat right out of my mind while I blanked out. "I'm going to-"
"She's continuing her studies as an art student, for sure." My uncle chimed in. I looked at him, aghast. Why would he say that to the press? Did he forget that I made up my mind about getting into a business school of his choice?
"She's amazing at her work and she should do what she's good at and what she thinks is right for her. Maybe Emerald should tell you what makes her passionate of art,"
I still couldn't recover from what my uncle had just told the journalist. I was still confused and bothered by it. Did he want to keep the fact that I chose to take up business? If he truly meant what he said, then that meant he'd let me continue school in Vancouver!
A smile tugged on the corner of my mouth as I sat straight; confidence flourished within me. "Well... art is a part of me." I started off, brushing the thought I had to the side. I made a mental note to talk to my uncle after. "I grew up listening to my mother's music and seeing the small archives of my dad's art work. Painting allowed me to express many feelings that I cannot easily say with words. Art speaks to one's soul. There's no language barrier when you create art and that's one thing that I love about it. We see the painter's soul in art and I want to, hopefully, become a painter that can deliver emotion and passion in my craft. I still have a long way to go and I'm willing to start small and work my way up. It's my pride and joy to paint."
The journalist seemed to be satisfied by my answer and thanked me. The journalist began to pack up when Uncle Richard excused us. The three of us were instructed to exit the rooms first and proceed to the main hall where the party was about to start.
With my mom and my cousins around, I couldn't possibly ask my uncle right away. I had to find a way to talk to him privately tonight.
"You did a good job out there, sweetie." My mother said with a genuine smile on her face.
"I kind of got nervous when the interviewer asked me a question. You're a natural at this kind of things."
"You'll get used to it," she told me and I knew right away that this may not be the last time I'd be near that platform. I couldn't believe that the public had an interest in what I say when in reality, I wasn't that interesting. All I do was paint and that was all about it.
Once we entered the hall, we were directed to another long table, facing the guests. My grandparents were already sitting in the middle. The silver curtain backdrop behind us seemed to sparkle some more with the hanging lights on the foreground.
"You look so beautiful grandma," I told her and kissed her on her cheeks. She looked simply elegant in her pure white silk dress. The diamonds around her neck sparked but it couldn't defeat the gleam in her eyes. She was happy.
"Thank you, Emerald. You look absolutely lovely today, too." Her loving grip on my arm was warm. Beside her was granddad, in his wheelchair, holding grandma's hand and the picture perfect moment made my heart swell.
"You look handsome, too, grandpa." I rubbed his shoulder as he patted my hand. I leaned in closer, my eyes close to his mouth.
"I... I am glad you're h-here with u-us," his speech was definitely getting better and to see him lively and happy with us today gave me a warm feeling inside.
Seeing my grandpa and grandma together like this made me feel envious of their relationship. I, too, would want a lasting marriage one day. I glanced over to my mother who was now talking to her parents, smiling and giving her regards to them.
I sighed internally.
If dad was around, mom would've been able to spend the rest of her life with him like this.
Now that I thought about it, mom never really tried to remarry before. She neither went to dates nor introduced me to any of her boyfriend before (if she ever had one). It felt a little weird to suggest such a thing to my mother but she also deserved a special someone, a significant other to take care of her.
I sat in the middle of Nana and mom, in perfect view of the people on the right wing of the room. Everybody seemed to know everybody as they chat and say hi to their neighbouring table. There were less people in the hall compared to the crazy number of guests from the charity event.
When the emcees of the night, Maegan and Reagan, announced that the party was about to start, the guests quickly found their way to their seats, the DJ stopped the music, and everybody's attention was directed to my cousins. Their charisma and beauty was a serious show stopper.
"Good evening. We are humbled by the number of guests tonight who are here to witness and celebrate with us one of the highlights of my grandparents' journey together in marriage." Maegan started off.
The twins continued to talk about my grandparent's history- when and where they met and how my grandfather courted my grandmother and how he won her heart to a sweet yes to his proposal. The crowd hooted and clapped at their romantic story and I was no exception to that.
As the twins continued to journey down the history lane, my eyes wandered around the entirety of the room. It was well lit and the familiar faces were easily recognizable. After all, I had seen majority of these faces from the annual charity but some were new to me.
But one person from the left wing specifically caught my attention.
Those familiar coppery eyes glued on mine with full intensity. I thought my breathing stopped for a moment that I caught him staring at me. He was clad in an all-black suit and bow tie. He looked much better compare to the last time I saw him- he seemed okay.
My chest ached and my stomach twisted all at the same time. I couldn't stop staring and so could he. Even if I looked away, I knew I'd keep on looking back.
When I finally broke our heart-racing gaze, I caught my uncle's eyes on mine.
And the smile he wore- that approving smile- gave me the urge to jump to where Marcus was and take this chance my uncle gave me.
No matter what the outcome was, I'd take it with open mind and open heart.
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A/N: Watch out for the next installment as it is the end of Painting Paper Hearts. Also, the epilogue will be pretty special. Stay tuned! ;)
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♫♪ When I Look At You by Miley Cyrus ♫♪